


The Horrifying Case of Pennywise the Clown

by buckyskywalker



Category: Buzzfeed Unsolved (Web Series), IT (Movies - Muschietti)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Based On Buzzfeed Unsolved, Buzzfeed Unsolved Supernatural, Horror, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-16
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 01:48:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,118
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23687170
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buckyskywalker/pseuds/buckyskywalker
Summary: Set in an alternate universe where Richie and Eddie are in their late 20’s/early 30’s and have their own YouTube series called Buzzfeed Unsolved. (Yes, Eddie Kaspbrak is Ryan Bergara and Richie Tozier is Shane Madej.)It’s their first case in their hometown of Derry, Maine and they are investigating an old abandoned building called the Neibolt House. They delve into the sewers to investigate this mysterious entity known as: Pennywise the clown.
Relationships: Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier
Comments: 5
Kudos: 51





	The Horrifying Case of Pennywise the Clown

Two men sit next to each other in a moving car. The smaller of the two is the driver, and the taller man sits in the passenger seat with his knees higher to his chest than is comfortable for his long, lanky limbs.  
These two men are called Richie Tozier and Eddie Kaspbrak; Richie being the tall, lanky figure staring out of the passenger side window, and the smaller, timid man being Eddie; who currently has a tighter grip than necessary on the steering wheel as he makes a turn down a dark, uninviting street.

“You okay there, buddy?” Richie’s tone is calm and smooth. He is met with Eddie’s wide, chestnut eyes that answer his question without him even needing to speak.

“Dude, I’m so scared,” Eddie’s wavering voice would have given away his fear whether he had announced it or not, but he wasn’t afraid of being honest with Richie. Sure, he might mock him, but he would never judge him. Richie lets out a hearty laugh that puts Eddie a little at ease.

“What is there to be scared of in Derry? Other than the fact that we’re in Derry,” this earns a small laugh from Eddie which is what Richie hoped for.

“It’s where we’re going that scares me,” Eddie is still smiling slightly but his wide eyes give his fear away too much to fool anyone. Richie lets out another laugh that has a quiet, fond tone to it. A fondness for his brown eyed friend that always shows when he’s trying to make him feel less afraid, because all Richie wants is for Eddie to feel brave when they’re together.

“It’s gonna be fun! We get to explore an old house and we might even see a clown,” Richie smirks when he sees Eddie grimace at the very mention of a clown. Eddie shuts his eyes tight and scrunches his nose like he just smelt something disgusting. 

“The clown,” Eddie shudders.

“The clown,” Richie mocks him.

“This week on Buzzfeed Unsolved we investigate the Neibolt House in our hometown of Derry, Maine, as part of our ongoing investigation into the question: are ghosts real?” Eddie stares down the camera intensely with a flicker of worry in his eyes that contradicts his confident demeanour. Richie stands next to him with a forced straight face and shakes his head no in answer to Eddie’s rhetorical question.

Richie and Eddie are standing in front of an aging, decrepit house with wood the colour of cigarette ash. Infront of them is their camera man and a few other members of their crew who are on their phones checking social media and chatting with each other. The lightness of the atmosphere between everybody against this theatrically spooky backdrop is an odd scene.

“It’s already pretty horrifying as it is but this house and specifically the sewers beneath it are said to harbour an evil spirit,”

“A clown!”

Eddie rolls his eyes at Richie’s chipper delivery and Richie chuckles at himself.

“Not just any old clown,” Eddie has that mysterious air wash over him like he always does when he really gets into his spooky little stories. 

“What…what kind of clown are we dealing with here?” Richie humours him.

“Oh, you’ll see,” Eddie smirks. Richie pretends to look worried and Eddie snorts at the stupid expression on his face. No matter how scared Eddie gets, Richie can always make him laugh.

“Okay, let’s get into the history.”

**the Well House, also known as the haunted house**   
**or the Neibolt house; is an old abandoned house located on**   
**29 Neibolt Street in Derry, Maine. The house has been**   
**there since the early 1950’s and has been associated with**   
**many ghost sightings and unusual activity. The most**   
**frequent sightings all mention seeing the same figure:**   
**a tall, creepy clown that feeds on your greatest fears**

**they were uh, really creative when they**   
**gave that house its nickname, huh?**

**is that all you took from that?**

**well, (small wheeze) I’m just saying**   
**they could’ve been more creative**

**I just told you that inside this house dwells a fucking evil,**   
**dementor ass clown creature and you’re just like…**   
**could’ve put more effort in naming the house**

**(wheeze)**   
**well, it’s a shit name**

**okay wise guy, what would you have named it?**

**I don’t know, something a bit spookier  
** **something to fit the theme**

**like what?**

**uuuuh…**   
**uh…**   
**the spooky circus**

**the spooky circus?**

**clown town**

**no**

**clown town is a great name. If they had called it that,**   
**I bet no one would have been scared of it.**   
**they would’ve loved that house. they would’ve had fun sleepovers**   
**and partied with the fun clown man**

**just**   
**just shut up**

**(wheeze)**   
**okay**

**the unusual activity that has been recorded over**   
**the years seems to fit into a spooky pattern.**   
**this mysterious clown entity has only ever been**   
**sighted a few times every 27 years**

**oh, that’s not so bad**

**hahahahahahahahaha**

**it’s a fucking clown?? anyone can dress as a clown. how**   
**do we know it’s not just some fucking weirdo in a suit,**   
**terrorizing the streets of Derry? I mean, this is Derry**   
**we’re talking about…**

**(wheeze)**

**what a clown**

**yeah but he ate people-**

**hang on-**

**(wheeze)**

**he ate people?**

**yeah, that’s what I’m saying. he’s more**   
**than just a weirdo with face paint on-**

**well, I mean**   
**anyone can eat a person…**

**(wheeze)**

**I’m just saying, my point still stands**

**yeah, but-**

**it’s probably my neighbour. he looks like he’s- (wheeze)**

**he looks like a cannibal clown?**

**he’s got shifty eyes**

**okay, sure**

**it’s my neighbour, Jim. Jim the clown**

**(wheeze)**

**Jim if you’re watching this-**

**we’re onto you**

**(wheeze)**

**(wheeze)**

“So, I guess we better get in there,” Eddie takes a dramatic, deep breath.

“Down to clown town,” Richie has a perpetual smirk on his face that drives Eddie crazy in a love to hate it kind of way.

“I’m down to clown!”

“Shut the fuck up,” Eddie shuts his eyes tight and shakes his head. He faces the door of the house and hovers his hand over the handle. Richie notices the hesitation and smirks softly.

“You okay, buddy?” Richie pats him on the shoulder and he recoils slightly but not completely.

“I’m fine, I just-” Eddie suddenly feels around in his jacket pockets frantically.

“I left my inhaler in the car,” Eddie rushes to the car and Richie follows lethargically.

“You know your inhaler won’t protect you from ghosts, right?” Richie teases. Eddie is rooting around in the glove compartment.

“Found it!” Eddie triumphantly returns to the front door of the house and takes a deep breath from his inhaler.

“And it’s not a ghost, it’s a creature. And I need my inhaler, so I don’t have an asthma attack and die,” Eddie snaps. Richie laughs gently.

“Of course, we don’t want you to die,” Richie places a patronizing hand on his shoulder and Eddie squints his eyes at him.

“Let’s just get on with it,” Eddie turns the handle of the door without breaking eye contact with Richie.

“Yeah, let’s go! We’ve been waiting on you, man!” Richie taps on an imaginary watch. Eddie ignores him and takes steady, calculated steps on the creaky floor of this miserable old building.

“I love what they’ve done with the place! It’s quite homey in here,” Richie pans the dingy room with his eyes and laughs to himself. Eddie turns to him with a blank expression.

“It smells so bad in here,” He covers his nose with his hand and tries to hold back a small gag. Richie takes a deep breath in and acts like he’s smelling a bouquet of flowers.

“It smells like clown,” He gags a little and laughs off his regret for taking such a big whiff of this disgusting room.

“Oh God, it really does smell awful,” Richie is still laughing, and Eddie gives him a soft, smug smirk.

“That’s what you get for being so cocky!” Eddie is laughing now too, but he stops abruptly when he hears a creak from the floorboards above him.

“Did you hear that?” Eddie’s eyes reach a new level of wide. Richie rolls his eyes and prepares to humour his friend for the millionth time.

“Hear what?”

Eddie doesn’t answer for a few seconds and a flicker of concern washes over Richie’s face.

“What? Was it a ghost? A goblin? A ghoul?”

“Shut the fuck up for a second!” Eddie continues to strain his ears trying to listen for the sound again, but it never comes.

“Mr Clown?” Richie test the waters. Eddie doesn’t respond, but he doesn’t stop him, either.

“I think you need to get some bleach in here, your house really stinks,” Richie puts his hands on his hips like he’s giving a motherly lecture. Eddie lets out a small wheeze.

“Or are you the stink?” Eddie chuckles loudly at this, which only eggs Richie on.

“When was the last time you had a shower? Hmm? Clown?” Richie mocks the air and Eddie can’t stop laughing.

“You STINK!” Richie yells at the top of his voice and even the people behind the camera have to hold back laughter. Eddie tries to hold back a shocked gasp.

“Jesus CHRIST, sir!”

**in the summer of 1988, a man by the name of Mike Hanlon**   
**claims to have come into contact with the clown as a teen.**   
**He even reveals the creature’s name: Pennywise the Clown**

**(laughter)**

**(wheeze)**   
**yeah, I thought you might enjoy that**

**Oooooh, look at me! I’m Pennywise the**   
**Clown! Look at me dance!**

**(wheeze)**

**(demonic laughter)**

**Jesus Christ! that is horrifying!**

**(demonic laughter gets louder)**

**no! stop it!**

**(wheeze)**

**anyway, in 1988, Mike Hanlon claims that**   
**him and his group of friends encountered this**   
**clown on various occasions, and I will warn you,**   
**this shit gets crazy…**

**can’t wait**

**When Mike was 6, his parents died in a horrible fire.**   
**He spoke to me about his story via email, and he**   
**recounted his experience in horrifying detail, saying:  
 _“Before I was rescued, my mom and dad were trapped_**   
_**in the next room over from me. They were pushing and** _   
_**pounding on the door trying to get to me. But it was too hot.** _   
_**When the firemen finally found them, the skin on their hands** _   
_**had melted down to the bone”** _

The two amateur investigators are revealed at an office desk in a room with old fashioned décor. Behind them is a corkboard covered in newspaper clippings, like something out of a cop drama. Infront of Eddie is an open case file and the camera crew are filming them as usual. Richie is aghast at Eddie’s words, and Eddie notices this.

“So, uh…pretty horrible,” Eddie utters, solemnly.

“Yeah,” Richie looks genuinely saddened by this.

“And unfortunately, the story only gets darker.”

Richie sighs, “great.”

**after this horrific tragedy, Mike went to live**   
**with his grandfather on his farm, where he was**   
**taught the family business and made deliveries to**   
**the local butchers in his town.**

**so, where does the clown fit into this?**

**hold your horses, I’m getting to it!**

**I’m here for the clown, Eddie! Give me the**   
**clown!**

**I’m painting the picture**

**paint quicker!**

**it was on one of his deliveries that he had his**   
**first meeting with the creature, and he describes**   
**the encounter as follows:**   
_**“The back door of the building was glowing around** _   
_**the edges like the room was on fire, and hands the colour** _   
_**of charcoal start clawing at the door trying to get out. I was** _   
_**frozen on the spot with fear. Then the door swung open** _   
_**and there he was, a tall figure hanging by his neck,** _   
_**imitating the sheep carcases that were dangling next** _   
_**to him. As he spun to face me, he was devouring one** _   
_**of the sheep, but it was still alive, and crying.** _   
_**the clown looked at me and let out an ungodly scream** _   
_**as it charged towards me, but before it could get me,** _   
_**the owner of the store appeared in the doorway asking** _   
_**me why I looked so afraid, and the clown was gone.”** _

Eddie ends this quote with a theatrical stare into the camera.

“Sounds like PTSD,” Richie states in a matter of fact tone. Eddie looks at him with a challenging smile.

“I can see why you would think that, but there’s much more to his story that PTSD just would not explain.”

“Of course. A screaming clown creature is the only logical explanation.”

“Let’s see what you have to say after we meet him,” Eddie turns back to the camera with a confident smirk. Richie looks deadpan into the camera and shakes his head in disagreement.


End file.
